Swindon and Kington Langley's One Ball Croquet Competition raises more than £250 for charity

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Swindon One-Ball

The croquet season traditionally starts with a One Ball competition for charity. This year the chosen charity is the Alzheimer's Society and all players were asked to wear blue - the Society's colours.

Swindon and Kington Langley Croquet Club join together for this annual event which, this year, was held in Swindon with competitors from both clubs. Competitors, and others, make donations which this year raised a staggering £250 for the chosen charity demonstrating the commitment of members of both clubs to community action.

One Ball is a fun game combining both croquet codes (Association and Golf) with players playing with one ball rather than using the usual colour pairing.

This year the competition took place under clear blue skies (appropriate as the Alzheimer's Society colour) but with a cold east wind frequently gusting to gale force which made life somewhat difficult for the players.

After six round of very close and competitive play, two players - Ted Crossley from Kington Langley and Tony Mayer from Swindon) ended on 5 wins but with Ted slightly ahead on hoop difference. Third place went to Terry Theobold from Swindon with 4 wins. This was an excellent performance as Terry had previously only had an hour or two's practice having never played this variation of the game before.

Having raised more than £200 entitles Swindon and Kington Langley to three places in the Southern Final. Ted and Tony will be there but with Terry otherwise committed the third place goes to Julia Cook from Kington Langley with three wins but with the best hoop difference and head to head result.

Thanks to all the players from both clubs, the Swindon ladies who provided the catering throughout the day plus other spectators for braving the cold wind.

It was a fun day, enjoyed by all and in aid of a very good cause.